A researcher would like to determine the effect of caffeine on memory. Participants are randomly assigned to receive a caffeine
pill or a sugar pill. Both groups complete a recall task that assesses their memory. However, even those who received the sugar pill had a small increase in memory. This is likely due to: a. The placebo effect b. The correlational approach to the study c. The participants becoming smarter d. The experimental effect
The placebo effect refers to an improvement in symptoms as a result of medical treatment with an inactive substance or staged medical procedure. Placebos are given to study the subjects in the control Trial. The study subjects don't know if they are taking real medicaton or not, so researchers can get the effectiveness of trial drug.
Patient recovers without genuine medical intervention
Attributed to belief in the effectivenees of treatment.
Belief mediates healing of symptoms.
Cases reported since the early 20th century.
A researcher would like to determine the effect of caffeine on memory. Participants are randomly assigned to receive a caffeine pill or a sugar pill. Both groups complete a recall task that assesses their memory. However, even those who received the sugar pill had a small increase in memory. This is likely due to <u>the placebo effect.</u>
The placebo effect in psychology refers to a situation in which participants in a research receive beneficial effects due to the administration of an inactive substance or a sham treatment. The positive beneficial effect received can then be attributed purely to believe and not to the treatment itself. A placebo treatment could produce a real healing effect like a true medical or psychological treatment.
The participants who received the sugar believed it to be a memory enhancing treatment hence the slight increase in memory capacity due to placebo effect.
